Public safety debate Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Public safety debate - Research Paper ExampleThere is a growing concern among the human rights group regarding the morality of such(prenominal) stringent penalisations as a means to deter crime. However regardless of such national outcry against the immorality of death punishment, and the violation of human and civil rights it continues to be implemented in different parts of the world. In the wake of high-profile international cases such as terrorism and war crimes which are continuously on the rise which threatens to disrupt the social fabric of the society, capital punishment or death penalties support garnered more support bringing the topic back to public consciousness. Historically, diverse forms of punishment which were implemented to ensure law and order in society assimilate been influenced by a range of factors including social, economic, political as salutary as cultural, regardless of its impact on the outcome (Strange, 1996 Garland, McGown, and Meranze, 2011 Pate, Laurie, and Gould, 2012). Thus the issue of capital punishment is not merely restricted to legal issues but extends far beyond that and the only crucial question that looms large is the one concerning its moral legitimacy quite an than its efficacy. It has been often observed that with respect to issues aimed at questioning the legality, efficacy and credibility of policymaking process and its implementation, opinions are often sharply divided and staunch supporters as well as opponents exist that defying the claims made and weakening the arguments put forward by the rivals on either end of the spectrum (Weiss, 1991 Majone, 1989). The literature supporting and dismissing the credibility of capital punishment is on the rise pointing to opposing conclusions, which itself acts a barrier preventing the formation of an informed public opinion. Some such discussions are included hereunder Death penalty as a crime deterrent Proponents of death penalty argue that the threat of punishment a cts a deterrent to criminal offenders and prevents them from committing crime. It attracts large scale public disapproval and has a serious impact on their attitudes towards the criminals thus affecting the morality of those convicted of serious crimes. There is large amount of literature which provides empirical test regarding the effectiveness of criminal punishment as an effective crime deterrent. Researchers have argued that the fear of such harsh punishment instills a fear of execution among the mass and hence results in the reduction of homicides (Dezhbakhsh, Rubin, and Shepherd 2003 Mocan and Gittings 2003 Shepherd 2004 Zimmerman 2004 Shepherd 2005). Furthermore it has also been argued that the threat of punishment induces compliant behavior among the public which results in pursuit the law by the citizens as a matter of habit, thus successfully establishing a natural law and order in the society and safeguarding the well-being and hostage of the citizens in the process ( Siegel, 2012). However contrary to such claims, it has been observed by various researchers that most criminals are unyielding to harsher punishments either due to their ignorance regarding the perceived happen associated with the crimes and the severity of the punishment or their complete lack of knowledge regarding the consequences of their actions (Siegel, 2010 Brody & Acker, 2011). The proponents of death